Children in Conflict Zones: How War Impacts Children Around the World
More than 520 million children are living in or fleeing conflict-affected areas around the world. Last year, the number of people displaced by conflict globally reached an all-time high of 32.3 million, impacting an estimated 13 million children.
Every day, children face violence, displacement, hunger, disease and the loss of education because of armed conflict. In 2025, the United Nations recorded the highest number of grave violations against children ever documented.
520+ M
Children living in or fleeing conflict
24,000+
Children subjected to grave violations
35K/ day
Children displaced by conflict
Where Are Children Most Affected by Conflict Today?
In 2025, violence against children in conflict reached devastating new levels, with more children subjected to grave violations than ever recorded. Children are not just caught in conflict, they are being targeted, injured and denied the basic conditions they need to survive.
Children are experiencing the effects of conflict in dozens of countries around the world. According to the United Nations, the highest number of verified grave violations against children in 2025 were recorded in:
• Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory
• Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Nigeria
• Myanmar
• Somalia
These contexts are characterized by high-intensity conflict, widespread use of explosive weapons and prolonged instability, often in densely populated settings.
Killing and Maiming
Children are killed, injured or permanently disabled as a result of armed conflict.
Recruitment and Use of Child Soldiers
Children may be forced or coerced into joining armed forces or armed groups.
Sexual Violence
Children may experience rape and other forms of sexual violence during conflict.
Abduction
Children can be kidnapped and separated from their families and communities.
Attacks on Schools and Hospitals
Conflict often damages or destroys the places children rely on for education and healthcare.
Denial of Humanitarian Access
Children may be prevented from accessing life-saving food, water, medicine and aid.
What Is the Impact of Conflict on Children?
Today, the nature of conflict – and its impact on children – is evolving. The world is witnessing deliberate campaigns of violence against civilians, including the targeting of schools, the abduction and enslavement of children, and deliberate starvation.
In today’s armed conflicts, there is often no longer a clearly demarcated battlefield: children’s homes and schools are the battlefield.
The nature of conflict has changed, putting children in the frontline in new and terrible ways. Wars are lasting longer. They are more likely to be fought in urban areas amongst civilian populations leading to deaths and life-changing injuries, and laying waste to the infrastructure needed to guarantee access to food and water. Attacks on schools and hospitals are up.
Children are disproportionately suffering the consequences of these brutal trends.
- We are seeing more children facing unimaginable mental and physical trauma.
- More children are going hungry.
- More children are falling victim to preventable diseases.
- More children are out of school.
- More children are at risk of recruitment by armed groups.
- More children are trapped on the frontline without access to humanitarian aid.
The Distinctive Ways Children are Harmed by Armed Conflict
Children suffer in conflict in different ways than adults, partly because they are physically weaker and also because they have so much at stake – their physical, mental and psychosocial development are heavily dependent on the conditions they experience as children.
Conflict affects children differently depending on a number of personal characteristics, significantly age, but also disability status, ethnicity, religion and whether they live in rural or urban locations.
How Your Support Help Children in Conflict Zones
Protection from Harm
We help identify and support vulnerable children, provide child protection services and work to reduce risks of abuse, exploitation and violence.
Child-Friendly Spaces
Child-friendly spaces provide safe places for children to play, learn and receive emotional support during emergencies.
Educational Resources
We help children continue learning through temporary learning spaces, educational materials and support for teachers and caregivers.
Access to Healthcare
We provide health services, nutrition support and essential supplies to help children survive and recover during crises.
Family Reunification
We work to reunite separated children with parents and caregivers whenever possible and strengthen family-based care.
Advocacy
The scale of harm demands urgent, coordinated action. Save the Children is calling on governments and the international community to act now and take concrete diplomatic, political and legal measures against those responsible for crimes against children.
